


Keeping People in the Dark is Quite Ungentlemanly

by CasualThursday



Series: Tea and Bullets [1]
Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Feelings, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-23
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-12-05 23:48:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11588676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CasualThursday/pseuds/CasualThursday
Summary: Harry's back and Eggsy is oblivious, and Merlin and Roxy are long-suffering saints waiting for Harry and Eggsy to get their shit together.Or: Eggsy thinks his baby sister has more sense than a fifty year old spy with an eye patch.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. If I did, my ships would be canon and not fanfiction.
> 
> Many thanks to lovely editors [National_Nobody](http://archiveofourown.org/users/National_Nobody) and [potooyoutoo](http://archiveofourown.org/users/potooyoutoo). 
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Ten inches.

It was because of just ten inches that he failed. Less than the distance covered by a step, as easy as reaching out a hand--

He failed because of those measly ten inches.

Somehow he’d gotten the job anyway.

Eggsy didn’t have a codename yet. Merlin had asked him about taking Galahad, but Eggsy’s mind had recoiled from the thought so fast he felt sick. Something must have shown in his face because Merlin had only pursed his lips and changed the subject.

Eggsy felt a warm rush of affection towards him just thinking about it. The bastard really was growing on him.

It wasn’t as if there wasn’t plenty of work to go around, even for Eggsy, who was kinda sorta an agent, only not really. It was complicated. Merlin had taken to calling him Mordred on missions, but that’s because he has a shit sense of humor.

For an organization headed by a certifiable dickhead, there were only a few casualties due to exploding heads. And another couple due to V-Day.

Arthur (done in by yours truly), Bors and Gawain had their heads transformed into colorful fireworks displays, and Tristan had met the wrong end of a rocket launcher (in Greenland of all places) during V-Day. Bedivere was dead, too, but only because he was old as fuck. Apparently a 98 year old agent was the _last_ thing criminal organizations were expecting, and he’d been damn good at his job.

It was a shame really; Eggsy’d heard that he was the only one who could count cards properly and Eggsy would’ve liked to compare notes.

So there were five vacancies--

No, wait.

Six.

Fuck. He had to stop doing that.

Merlin had told him that Harry would be proud of him. Eggsy doesn’t know if it was better to believe that lie or not. Harry wouldn’t be proud of him--Eggsy had failed, after all, and no saving the world or whatever could possibly make up for the look of disappointment on his face, or the anger in his last words.

Somehow that upset him more than anything he saw Harry do in the church.

Eggsy moved his mum and baby sister into a townhouse in Kensington. Harry’s house was close enough that, after a particularly rough mission, Eggsy could spend some time there so he didn’t scare his mum. And avoid the questions she would ask if he showed up with a black eye or a busted lip when he was supposed to be a fucking _tailor_.

If he found himself dusting off Mr. Pickles every so often, well, no one was there to comment. And even if someone was, fuck ‘em.

It was nearing the year anniversary of V-Day, and so far Eggsy had completed 63 missions, Harry’s entire DVD collection, and 5% of his personal library. And that said more about how many books Harry owns-- _owned_ \--than anything else. He was still discovering all the places Harry managed to hide weapons, though.

He was there with JB, not wanting to go back to an empty house when his mum and Daisy were out on a playdate, flipping through Harry’s records--because of _course_ the posh git would have actual vinyl instead of ripping it from CDs or getting it illegally off the internet like normal people. He’d put on one at random, something French, and a woman’s voice was crooning softly in the background when Merlin called him.

“Eggsy,” Merlin said as way of greeting.

“Hey Merl,” Eggsy said, crouching down to scratch JB behind the ears and give him a well deserved belly rub. “What’s up?”

“The new Arthur’s had a vote, Eggsy, and wants you to report to headquarters.”

“You’ve got a new Arthur? When’d this happen?”

“The paperwork was finalized last week, and before you ask, you weren’t told ‘cause ye don’t have clearance, lad.”

Eggsy made a face at JB. “They want me right now?”

“That’s right.”

“If I can’t vote, wha’d they want me for?”

“It pertains to you.”

“Gonna give me the news?” Eggsy gave JB one last pat before getting up to change into a suit. “C’mon, Merlin. Can’t I have a hint?”

Merlin paused. “We’ll be expecting you in thirty.”

“Aw, c’mon!”

Merlin hung up without gracing him with a reply.

Eggsy finished dressing before snatching up his keys and heading towards the door. He took the tube to Piccadilly Circus, hoping that JB wouldn’t freak out being alone with the stuffed Mr. Pickles in the bathroom while he was gone.

He reached the shop with five minutes to spare, greeting Paul, who was manning the counter, with a smile and a nod before heading past him and up the stairs. He found Merlin waiting outside the meeting room.

“Hey, Merlin,” Eggsy grinned.

Merlin gave him a short nod but didn’t smile back. In fact, he looked nervous (or as nervous as Merlin _could_ look).

When Eggsy went to knock, Merlin caught him by the shoulder. “Just don’t be too shocked, alright lad?”

Eggsy frowned. “By what?”

Merlin opened his mouth before seeming to think better of it, letting out a sigh and shaking his head. He patted Eggsy on the back.

Feeling unsettled, but knowing he was armed in case he needed to shoot something, he knocked, and hearing someone call out “Enter!” opened the door.

Eggsy stepped inside and stopped abruptly. He was vaguely aware of Merlin following him and closing the door quietly behind him, but he couldn’t pay him any mind. Or the way Roxy was shooting him worried looks, or the curious glances from Percival, Kay, and Lamorak. He couldn’t because--

Harry _fucking_ Hart was sitting at the end of the table.

Eggsy forced himself to start breathing again, and called up all his resources to appear as calm and composed as he could.

“Sir,” he said shortly, nodding to the room at large. He swallowed and looked at Harry, taking in the scar by his left temple, the dark eye patch covering his left eye, before focusing instead on Harry’s shoulder, not daring to meet his gaze because then he might do something _very_ stupid. “Arthur, I presume?”

He hadn’t realized he had adopted his posh-arsed-git accent until something flickered across Harry’s face (surprise?), before becoming completely blank again.

“Yes,” Harry replied simply.

That _voice_.

Eggsy clasped his hands behind his back so that he didn’t launch himself across the table to hit Harry in his _stupid_ gorgeous face.

Harry cleared his throat. “Merlin brought it to my attention that you have been working as an agent without an agent’s title.”

Eggsy looked pointedly away from Harry, towards the mirror on the wall. “I failed the test, sir. I have no right to be a Kingsman in any official capacity.” The words flowed out, but everything felt muffled, slow, like sound was traveling to him through molasses instead of air.

“The mission with Valentine could easily replace that,” Merlin said.

“I don’t think Kingsman is the type of organization that offers make up tests.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers,” Harry added. And _fuck_ , if that wasn’t an indication over how Harry felt about the whole shitty business, Eggsy didn’t know what was.

Merlin cleared his throat and Eggsy shifted his gaze to look at him. “Kingsman should not and _is_ not in the business of turning away a frankly excellent candidate because of tradition. Especially considering that those sort of traditions led us to this situation in the first place.” Merlin shot a look at Harry then that Eggsy couldn’t quite read before meeting Eggsy’s gaze again. “It’s up to you whether you wish to take the position.”

“Which is--?”

“Galahad, of course.” Eggsy’s gaze snapped towards Harry, who gave him a wry smile. “It suits you.”

Eggsy swallowed with difficulty, and nodded. “Then I accept. Sir.”

Harry gestured towards the empty seat to his right and Eggsy walked over as calmly as he could and took a seat.

“Excellent,” Merlin said. “That still leaves four vacancies that need filling; filling them all at once would be too hasty. Some of our retired agents are willing to help out and act as handlers for our newest agents.” He turned to look at Roxy and Eggsy. “New members usually accompany other agents to become accustomed to fieldwork, but we have too little manpower and too many missions for that to be a viable option. Not to mention, you went through a mission with very little info, very little guidance, and very little preparation and survived so we’ll consider that the test run over and done with.”

Eggsy felt the corners of his mouth twitch involuntarily at Merlin’s dry tone, feeling himself relax a little bit for the first time he entered the room.

Merlin continued talking, going over the global situation, the trouble spots, before Arthur dismissed them.

“Galahad--”

“Yes, Arthur?” Eggsy said, as everyone stood to leave.

Harry seemed to struggle with words for a moment, before clearing his throat. “May I speak with you for a moment?”

“Could we postpone to a later time?” Eggsy said politely. “I’m afraid I have a previous engagement.”

Eggsy was busy staring at the portrait on the opposite wall, so he missed Harry’s startled expression before it was smoothed over into something placid and bland. “Of course,” Harry said.

Eggsy could not get out fast enough. He managed to avoid running into Roxy or Merlin on the way out, making his way back to Harry’s house to clear out his own sparse belongings and pick up JB before heading back to his mum’s place.

She and Daisy were still out when he got there, so he put on the comfiest clothing he owned (the giant oversized sweater was _definitely_ not his own, not that he’d ever admit it--and not like he had thought the original owner would miss it), grabbed his mum’s stash of chocolates and cranberries, made himself a cup of tea, curled up on the couch with JB and popped in his go-to film.

It probably wasn’t a good idea after the first ten minutes, because _My Fair Lady_ made him think of Harry and that ruined the whole point of this exercise. So, when his mum and sister came back, he was still watching, mug empty and face wet with tears because Higgins was a _dickhead_.

“Eggsy? You home, luv?” his mum called, and Eggsy had to clear his throat before answering.

“Hey, mum!”

“Let me get this one settled, yeah?”

Eggsy stared at the TV screen, not really watching anymore, instead listening to his mum putter around the kitchen, singing, and then moving up the stairs to put Daisy to bed. He must have drifted off, because he started when his mum called out tentatively, “Eggsy, luv?”

Eggsy blinked, taking in his mum’s worried expression.

“Wha’sa matter?” she asked soothingly.

Eggsy wiped at his eyes furiously, and tried to give his mum a smile, but it fell flat. His mum tsked softly, then maneuvered herself so that they were cuddling on the couch. “None of that now,” she said sternly. “You ain’t gotta hide nothin’ from me. ‘Part from work stuff, but that’s ‘cause you have ta.”

Eggsy let out a weak laugh. He swallowed. “I can’t--” He stopped. “I just--” And then he was sobbing like he hadn’t done since he was seven years old and his dad was never coming home.

Michelle quickly tucked him under her chin, practically pulling him into her lap like he was two instead of twenty five. “Ssh, babe. You’re alright. It’s alright.”

She just held him, rocking him gently, running a soothing hand through his hair and murmuring nonsense until his sobs faded to hiccups. “You’re so strong, babe,” she said quietly, “An’ you’ve been strong for so long. So it’s okay to not for a bit, yeah? I’m here.” They sat there together, on the couch in the dark, and for a while, Eggsy just breathed.

Michelle was taking deep calming breaths that Eggsy found himself mimicking subconsciously, until his breathing returned to normal. They sat there together, on the couch in the dark, and for a while, Eggsy just breathed.

“You gonna be okay, babe?”

Eggsy sighed and nodded. “Thanks, mum,” he said hoarsely.

“You don’t gotta tell me nothin’ but I’m here if you do, okay? You gonna sleep alright?”

Eggsy let out a wet chuckle. “I’m knackered.”

His mum pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “I’m sure.”

And he did sleep. Because crying was fucking _exhausting_.

The next morning, he helped his mum feed Daisy, who was doing that toddler thing where she tried to see how far across the room she could fling her food. She had quite the arm already. Afterwards, he went to the shop even though it was his day off. He was determined to go to HQ and make use of their amazing training facility.

It took him three times longer to get there because he had to employ some serious avoidance techniques because Merlin and Arthur were lurking around every corner. But he managed it because he was a fucking spy. Plus those years sneaking out of the flat when Dean and his goons were hanging around gave him lots of practice.

He ran into Roxy at the shooting range.

She finished her round before turning to him, and moving to perch her protective goggles on her head and tug her earmuffs around her neck. “Did Merlin catch you?”

“No,” Eggsy said, checking over his gun as he set the machine to bring up another target.

“So you were able to lose them?”

“‘Course.” He saw Roxy grinning at him and smiled back before firing. Five perfect shots to the center of the head, five to the heart, and five to the paper target’s non-existent dick. If Merlin and Arthur were watching, they’d get the message to back the fuck off.

Roxy just laughed.

At lunch, they went out onto the lawn and parked themselves under a tree with sandwiches and beer.

“I’d be furious,” Roxy said simply, somehow understanding what Eggsy needed without having to ask. “And I’d let them stew for a bit. Wait until they begged for forgiveness.”

“Rox, you’d make Genghis Khan cry like a baby. You’d not wait long.”

Roxy preened a little at that, before nudging Eggsy’s side. “It’s no less than they deserve.”

“They’d say it’s ‘cause we’re spies--”

“And we’re supposed to be able to trust them,” Roxy said, face deadly serious. “Merlin’s in our ear on missions and Arthur’s the one sending us on them. We’re supposed to be able to trust them, and they betrayed that trust. And they’re your friends--friends shouldn’t have to keep secrets like that.”

“Did you know? ‘Bout Harry?”

It was the first time Eggsy had said his name aloud in over six months.

Roxy pursed her lips. “I knew as Lancelot.”

“Jesus, they made it about work?”

“Well, it _is_ about work. We’re spies; our work is our life.” She nudged him again. “And you weren’t an official agent.”

Eggsy sagged a little, leaning forward to rest his arms on his knees.

“I wish I could have told you.”

Eggsy turned to look at her, and her expression was earnest. He smiled, something soft and sad and just a hint bitter. “I know, Rox. Thanks.” He leaned against her, and felt her lean back.

It went on like this for the rest of the week, until Lancelot was summoned away for another mission.

Another meeting was called, and Eggsy went, because he was a fucking professional, that’s what. This time it was Merlin who called after him, but addressed him as Galahad. Well, at least _he’d_ gotten the fucking message--Arthur was still lurking in hallways.

Eggsy had been ready for a confrontation. Instead, Merlin had talked about upgrading the security system for his family’s house. Then he had just said “I’m sorry, lad.” So, Eggsy was still a bit angry, but he’d stopped avoiding Merlin after that. And since Merlin was legitimately sorry and all, he only waited a little bit before forgiving him.

He was sent on a mission shortly after, some low-level stealing of information in Berlin that had taken him barely more than 48 hours. He’d reported back to debrief Merlin and hand over the USB before heading to a Nando’s for a meal that wasn’t a granola bar and he didn’t have to cook himself.

It was late, meaning that the customers consisted mostly of drunken university students, software engineers, and exhausted looking young families with kids passed out in strollers. Eggsy knew sitting by himself would be odd, but at this point he was too tired and hungry to give a shit. He placed his order before heading to the toilet. He washed his hands, splashed some water on his face and leaned against the sink for a moment to let out a sigh.

Splashing his face once more, he looked up at the mirror--

Only to find someone standing right behind him.

“Jesus _FUCKIN’ Christ_!” Eggsy shouted, throwing out an elbow out and catching the man in the chest.

There was a muffled curse as Eggsy whipped around, drawing out a knife in a smooth motion and aiming it towards the man on the ground.

“Shit,” the man said, and looked up-- _fuckin’ Harry Hart_.

“Harry!” Eggsy said, horrified, “You don’t just creep up on people in the toilet!”

“Consider that a lesson well learned,” Harry said, sounding a little breathless.

“Wait, were you following me?!” Eggsy asked, concern replaced by anger.

“Yes, well--” Harry cleared his throat.

“You creepy fuck--”

“I couldn’t talk to you at work, now could I?” Harry retorted, voice rising steadily. “Not with the way you were avoiding me!”

“Yeah, well maybe I was trying to be professional and all and not call you a fuckin’ wanker at meetings.”

“Or throw a punch, I assume?”

“I wouldn’t stop at one punch, bruv,” Eggsy muttered, glaring at Harry.

“You’ve gotten it out of your system, haven’t you?”

Eggsy grinned, all teeth. “You fuckin’ wish, mate.”

“Can’t we do this like mature adults?”

“Like posh toffs you mean?” Eggsy said bitterly, squinting up at Harry. “Because I ain’t changing my mind, I ain’t gonna pretend I’m not fuckin’ pissed over the stunt you and Merlin pulled. And you keeping me in the dark was fucking childish.”

Harry sighed and reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Can’t we at least talk first?”

“No,” Eggsy said stubbornly, and Harry’s mouth twisted into a frown, good eye narrowed. “First, I’m eating ‘cause I haven’t had a decent meal in for-fuckin’-eva, you get me?”

Harry relaxed slightly.

“But before that, I’m going to hit you because I’ve been thinkin’ ‘bout it for a while.”

Harry turned towards him in alarm, and Eggsy’s punch landed a millisecond later.

Harry’s head snapped to the side, but managed to recover in time to block the next punch. He blocked the next few, before Eggsy managed to hit him in the side.

There was a creak as the door opened and Harry and Eggsy paused in their grappling to look at the intruder.

“Um,” the newcomer said.

“Terribly sorry, could you come back in five minutes?” Harry said politely.

The stranger nodded dumbly and withdrew, and Harry reached over to lock the door.

“Shall we?”

Eggsy snarled and threw another punch.

“You fucking _bastard_ \--”

“Eggsy--”

“You’re a fucking _bastard_ , Harry--” His next punch faltered, went wild and Harry caught it, using it as leverage to pull Eggsy flush against him and wrapped his arms around him tightly, even as Eggsy struggled to get free. “Fuckin’ _idiot_ ,” Eggsy said hoarsely, blinking through the tears that had suddenly welled up.

“I’m sorry,” Harry said quietly. “I’m so so sorry, Eggsy.”

Eggsy shuddered, burying his face against Harry’s coat, and going limp, hands grasping at the lapels. “I really didn’t want to do this in the loo at Nando’s, Harry.”

“I, too, didn’t expect this outcome.”

Eggsy let out a shaky laugh. “Sorry,” he said, untangling himself from Harry’s embrace. “I’m getting snot all over you--” Harry stepped back, and Eggsy sucker punched him.

Harry doubled over, wheezing.

“Now I feel better.”

“Fantastic,” Harry gasped, shooting Eggsy a dirty look. Eggsy shrugged and wiped the tears from his face. Harry’s expression softened and he stood up straight, moving to unlock the door, gesturing for Eggsy to go first.

Eggsy returned to his seat, and Harry paused next to the seat across from him. Eggsy rolled his eyes.

“Sit, Harry,” he said, and Harry nodded, taking the chair with his usual elegance, ruined slightly by the the way his coat was rumpled and his hair out of place. Already, his cheek had begun to bruise, red and swollen, but he merely combed his hair back into place with his fingers and straightened his clothes out.

“You eat yet?”

“Yes, I have, thank you.”

A waiter came over with his order, and hesitated, eyes moving from Eggsy to Harry and back again.

“May I have some tea, please?” Harry said politely, and the waiter scurried away.

“You plan on staying?”

“We have a lot to talk about,” Harry said simply. “Though, I’d prefer not to talk here.”

“Where then?”

Harry hesitated. “I was thinking my house, but if you’re uncomfortable--”

“‘S better than the shop, yeah? Just--” He swallowed. “Just not your office, a’right?”

Harry gave him a strange look, but nodded his agreement.

Eggsy ate in silence, throwing looks at Harry sitting there, drinking his tea like a proper gent, looking classy and elegant in a fucking Nando’s.

Eggsy ate a bit faster than was considered polite, but with the way Harry was watching him he felt self-conscious and restless. He refused to let Harry pay, and soon enough they were climbing into the Kingsman cab waiting out front and making the fifteen minute journey to Harry’s house.

They went inside and Harry quickly made his way to the decanter in the dining room. “Scotch?”

“I think we’ll both need it,” Eggsy said dryly, accepting the glass with a murmured _thanks_.

“The living room, I think,” Harry said, and gestured for Eggsy to sit down on the sofa before taking the armchair opposite him. He cleared his throat. “So…”

Eggsy raised an eyebrow. “So,” he repeated, smirking when Harry gave him an exasperated look. He shifted to get comfortable and let his carefree expression drop. “What happened?”

“Well, Valentine’s hemophobia meant that he looked away before firing. I ended up with a graze, but that was serious enough to put me in a coma for several months. I ended up in a Kentucky hospital where no one could get in touch with my next of kin, nor was I able to contact anyone until I could get myself released. The rest was recovery and sorting out the mess left over from V-Day.”

Eggsy swallowed. “So you’ve been around for a while, yeah?”

“Yes. I returned to London around seven months ago--”

“See, if that was the case, what I don’t fuckin’ understand _is_ \--” Eggsy let out a shuddering breath to calm himself. “--Is,” he continued, “why’d you wait until now, Harry? Why wait so _fucking_ long?” He rubbed his hands over his face, letting out another shaky sigh. Then he laughed shortly, bitterly, a self-deprecating sort of laugh. “You’re still pissed, aren’t you?”

“I’m sorry?”

Eggsy looked up, and saw the carefully blank look on Harry’s face.

“The test,” Eggsy said, feeling the exhaustion from the past year, from the sleepless nights, from the emotional rollercoaster that was the last couple weeks, catching up with him. “‘Cause I didn’t shoot the _fuckin’ dog_.” He slouched back against cushions and waited.

Harry stared at him for a long moment, before his eye widened and mouth fell open slightly. Then he looked so horribly sad, that Eggsy tensed up, ready for another lecture about being a disappointment. But instead of a repeat of their last argument, Harry shifted so that he was crouching down in front of Eggsy, cupping his face gently and forcing Eggsy to look at him. “Oh Eggsy,” Harry said softly, “Tell me you weren’t thinking about that all this time?”

Eggsy shrugged in a way he hoped was nonchalant, eyes darting down to look at the stripes on Harry’s tie. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “You tellin’ me I should have thought diff’rent?”

“ _Eggsy_ \--”  

Eggsy looked up in time to see horror flicker across Harry’s face before settling into something frighteningly close to heartbreak. Eggsy moved to pull away from Harry’s grip, but Harry refused to budge.

“Eggsy,” Harry said again, and Eggsy had to try very hard to not be so pathetic as to lean into the thumbs that brushed across his cheekbones.

“What?” Eggsy muttered, screwing his eyes shut and clenching his jaw to keep his mouth from trembling.

“ _Eggsy_ ,” Harry pleaded, “Look at me, please.”

Reluctantly, Eggsy opened his eyes.

“I am not and never _was_ disappointed in you, Eggsy.”

Eggsy scoffed and Harry’s mouth twisted. He let go to hold Eggsy’s hands in his own and squeezed them gently.

“I was angry because Arthur was so smug and pretentious and you didn’t deserve his scorn. I was frustrated because I should have _realized_ you would never have shot JB.”

“You said I threw my chance away--”

Harry shook his head. “I thought you would have realized the bullets were blanks--You scored so well on your weapons tests--”

Eggsy snorted. “With less than a foot, it being a blank don’t matter.”

“What was that?” He sounded calm, but the way Harry’s hands twitched before letting his grip go slack told Eggsy he was anything but.

Eggsy frowned, shoulders hunching up--a stupid reaction to protect himself he’d never gotten around to break. “Less than a foot--”

Harry stood up abruptly and started to pace. “You’re saying you knew they were blanks?”

Eggsy flinched slightly, but Harry, with his good eye facing away, didn’t notice. “Yeah,” Eggsy said quietly. “Not that it mattered much.”

“And how far away was JB?” Harry said, turning towards Eggsy, scowl on his face.

“From the gun?” Eggsy asked, and at Harry’s curt nod, held out his hands. Ten inches. “‘Bout that much.”

“Shit,” Harry muttered, running a hand over his face. He reached over and drained his glass. “Another?” he asked distractedly.

“Sure?” Eggsy said.

Harry left the room with their glasses, leaving Eggsy to fidget and try to figure what the _fuck_ was going on.

Harry returned, and handed Eggsy his glass before settling back in his chair again. He cleared his throat. “I owe you another apology, it seems.”

Eggsy let his face scrunch up in confusion. “What for?”

“You were acting for the best in an admittedly shitty situation. I didn’t realize just how much Chester set you up to fail.”

“You mean it was supposed to be different? Further away?” Eggsy guessed. At Harry’s nod, Eggsy relaxed slightly and shrugged. “You didn’t know at the time. And I said some pretty awful things meself--”

Harry waved Eggsy off. “You already apologized; you have no reason to do so again.”

Eggsy smiled tentatively. “Yeah, well, stealing the car was a bit much.”

Harry returned his smile. “Since you’ve proven how much of a wrinkled old toadstool Chester was, I would say it was very much deserved.” His smile faded somewhat. “I am sorry, Eggsy. Truly.”

Eggsy let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “It’s okay, Harry, really.” Eggsy watched as the tension fell from his shoulders. “I would like to know why it took you so long to make an appearance though.”

“I thought it was for the best,” Harry admitted. “We’d not parted on cordial terms, and I thought it better to not burden you with my recovery when you were adjusting.”

“Seriously, Harry? Fuck you,” Eggsy said, scowling and draining his glass. “You’ve no right to decide that for me.”

“I realize that now,” Harry said mildly. “And I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, well…” Eggsy stared at his glass. “Doesn’t take the last year back, does it?”

“I know,” Harry replied quietly, and when Eggsy looked up, he could tell that Harry meant it.

They sat there, looking at each other in silence for a while.

“Yeah. Alright,” Eggsy huffed.

Harry blinked. “That’s it?”

Eggsy rolled his eyes. “You’re my friend, yeah? So I put up with stupid shit you do. But don’t think for a moment I won’t bring this up next time you try to do something stupid.”

Harry nodded solemnly. “I won’t forget.”

“Right then,” Eggsy said, tapping idly on his glass. “Right--”

“I have a guest room if you’d like,” Harry said, rising smoothly to his feet. “It’s already quite late.”

Eggsy stood up. “Thanks, I mean, if you don’t mind--”

“Eggsy--”

“I don’t want to be any trouble.”

“Darling, you could never be any trouble.” Harry was smiling at him softly, and Eggsy felt his face heat up at the endearment.

He blamed the whole thing on the alcohol.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the wonderful comments, my dears! :) They are what make me keep writing.
> 
> Again, many thanks to the marvelous [National_Nobody](http://archiveofourown.org/users/National_Nobody) and [potooyoutoo](http://archiveofourown.org/users/potooyoutoo). 
> 
> I hope you enjoy part two! :)

Things got easier after that. Eggsy didn’t have to make an effort to avoid Harry, and felt better without carrying that anger around with him all the time. That didn’t mean that he wasn’t still upset--he was fucking _pissed_. But Harry let him in more, which meant picking up on things Eggsy didn’t notice before.

Like the fact that he sometimes had the worst migraines, or how he was still regaining muscle mass from being in a coma for months so he found himself suddenly exhausted at points during the day. Sometimes the light overhead was too bright. Sometimes Harry’s left hand trembled without his consent. This usually meant that Harry was also extremely grumpy.

Harry tried to hide all his perceived imperfections and weaknesses from him, but Eggsy wasn’t an idiot. And he was also pretty fucking observant. Well, that and he watched Harry like a hawk. There were times when Eggsy was perched somewhere in Arthur’s office, filling out another form (as if spies didn’t have enough to do), when he would take breaks to stare at Harry working on his own paperwork. He didn’t do so wearing his glasses--he wasn’t stupid and Merlin was a nosy git at the best of times, so he didn’t want to give him more ideas.

Every so often, Harry would look up and meet his gaze and flush ever so slightly. Eggsy often  wondered why, but enjoyed shaking that perfect composure even a little bit so he didn’t dwell on it long.

He probably didn’t have to do his paperwork right then and there in Arthur’s office, but it was comfortable and Harry was warm and familiar and Eggsy didn’t quite want to let Harry out of his sight after not seeing him for days or weeks at a time. That, and Merlin was pushing agents to not leave Harry unguarded for long stretches of time. Last time that happened, Harry had disappeared from the shop and reappeared in a tea room across the city, almost giving Merlin an aneurism and Eggsy a fucking heart attack. No wonder Merlin was fucking bald.

With Harry still recovering, he was prone to more than occasional foul moods, so the other knights’ had taken to placing Eggsy in Harry’s general vicinity. Why, Eggsy had no fucking idea, especially when Harry’d known Merlin for years, but whenever Harry had a headache or a generally bad day that made him cranky and snappish and borderline _rude_ , Eggsy was manipulated into a spontaneous visit. Or left behind after a meeting. Or summoned back from wherever he was in the city, even on his days off. They’d refrained from calling him back from missions, because Harry would have noticed. But it was pretty ridiculous, the lengths the other agents and Merlin would go to.

Not that Eggsy minded. He genuinely enjoyed Harry’s company, and could immediately tell when Harry wanted or needed quiet, just existing in the same space for a while until one of them broke the silence or had other shit to do. It was nice. And it wasn’t so difficult to get Harry out of his slump and calm him down enough to act like a human instead of an angry bear. Eggsy didn’t know why the others seemed so desperate. Maybe it was because Eggsy was used to dealing with tantrums that couldn’t be alleviated by logic or tea.

With his baby sister (even though he loved her to the moon and back and then some), sometimes he needed a break between the excitement of a mission and the excitement that came with a toddler. Eggsy came to appreciate the calmness that came with chilling in Harry’s office. And being able to calm someone down if need be without desperate promises of ice cream.

One day, sitting on the sofa in Harry’s office, he’d put down the Murakami book he’d been reading, and fixed Harry a cup of tea, setting it next to Harry as he worked. Harry muttered a distracted ‘thank you’ and Eggsy had returned to his book with his own cup of tea, and had settled back in his spot, socked feet tucked up against him on the sofa, when Harry’s head snapped to look at him suddenly.

Eggsy started slightly, cursing quietly when tea sloshed over the sides of his cup and onto the saucer before he set it down. He squinted at Harry, tucking in his bookmark without looking and placing it aside.

“Whas’a matter?”

Harry simply stared at him, mouth slightly open, looking at Eggsy as if he just noticed he was in the room.

Eggsy furrowed his brow, concern rising up like a tidal wave. “Harry?”

Harry’s mouth snapped shut, and he shook his head. “Sorry, it’s--” He smiled, but it was slightly forced.

Eggsy was at the desk before he could second guess himself. “You alright?”

Harry cleared his throat and stood up suddenly. Eggsy had to crane his neck to meet his gaze.

“Dinner.”

Eggsy’s brow furrowed and he squinted up at Harry in confusion.

“It’s late,” Harry said faintly. “Have you eaten?”

Eggsy frowned. “No? I’ve been here with you.”

Harry’s mouth twitched into a smile that was more genuine. “Would you like to?”

“What, now?”

“It is 7:30.”

“That’s fine dining, that is,” Eggsy said, breaking out into a grin. Harry looked bemused at that, but Eggsy just patted his arm. “Sure.” He stared at Harry again. “You sure you’re alright?”

“Never better,” Harry said, still wearing that small smile of his. He gave Eggsy a once-over and raised his eyebrows. “Most establishments require footwear of some kind.”

Eggsy winced. “Right.”

Harry took them to a tiny, hole-in-the-wall Tibetan restaurant, where he was greeted by name by the hostess, hugged by the owner, and chatted amicably with the waiter (in _Tibetan_ ), before being seated.

It was delicious, of course. Because this was Harry, after all, and Eggsy couldn’t imagine his tastes being anything but.

Harry insisted on paying, and Eggsy relented eventually, on the condition that he paid the next time.

Harry looked so pleased by the mention of a next time that Eggsy couldn’t even feel guilty when he forked over the bill.

Eggsy returned home, happy and content, wondering when he and Harry could have dinner again.

The next time turned out to be pretty fucking soon.

Eggsy wasn’t expecting it--the shift of comfortable interaction at the office to spending free time together. Thinking back, it took him a ridiculously long time to realize what was happening, but once he’d cottoned on it was pretty obvious what Harry was doing.

Stuff like Harry paying for his meal the _next_ time by _fuckin’ paying while he used the loo_. Eggsy had yelled at him for that, but then Harry started doing other things instead. Like buying different types of tea for him to try, or a new tie pin.

Then it was a belt buckle that came with a miniature grappling hook, an _actual exploding pen_ , so very many ties, a pair of trainers that Eggsy _loved_ but was sure Harry loathed and thought garish and ungentlemanly.

“I mean, ‘s useful, it is. Turns out that tie pin has a built in lock picking kit.”

Roxy, who has been sitting across from him, listening him rant for the past ten minutes about Harry’s odd behavior (“It’s not even my birthday or nuthin’, Rox--”), put down the beverage with a ridiculously long and complicated name Eggsy didn’t bother trying to remember.

“Eggsy,” she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I love you, but you are fucking ridiculous.”

“Why? Wha’d I say?”

Roxy just sighed in a long-suffering type of way, patted his arm, and took another sip of her stupidly confusing beverage.

It didn’t stop at the gifts and the meals though, and Eggsy was getting overwhelmed so he decided to talk to Harry about it, like a proper adult and all that. Well, that, and the sheer number of ties and handkerchiefs was getting ridiculous.

Harry opened doors for him, made him tea, taught him Russian and Arabic when he had free time, cooked him gourmet level meals, even _fuckin’ pulled out his chair_ for him.

He’d done that for meetings, like _Kingsman_ meetings, and then there were the looks the other knights would give each other, the looks Eggsy didn’t quite understand but knew had something to do with him.

It was too much after a month or two.

Eggsy had gone over to Harry’s house unexpectedly, hoping to take Harry by surprise (and therefore less likely to distract Eggsy from his goal) and was greeted by Harry, wearing a cardigan and slippers, with his hair slightly messy but somehow still looking completely put together.

“Eggsy!” Harry greeted, looking surprised. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Yeah. Sorry ‘bout that,” Eggsy muttered, smiling sheepishly. “Can you talk?”

“Certainly,” Harry said, stepping aside and ushering Eggsy inside. “Would you like anything?”

“Um, I’m alright, thanks.”

“Must be serious,” Harry said wryly, and Eggsy’s nervousness subsided enough for him to grin.

“Just a bit,” Eggsy allowed, and Harry’s eyebrows rose.

“I see,” Harry said. He gestured towards the living room. “Shall we?”

Sitting in the same spot he had been when they’d last had a serious conversation, Eggsy tapped his foot nervously .

“Well, it’s the stuff… you’ve been doing.”

“What ‘stuff’ are you referring to?” Harry said, frowning and leaning forward. “Have I been doing something to upset you?”

“No! I mean, not really, it’s just--” Eggsy sighed. “It’s just, you can stop. You can stop trying to apologize.”

“Trying to apologize?” Harry repeated. “I’m not sure I understand.”

“The gifts--the gentleman, chivalry things--”

“Ah,” Harry said, and looked slightly uncomfortable. “I see.” He cleared his throat. “Eggsy, I’m not one for grand gestures or anything of the sort--”

Eggsy snorted. “What was all that in the Black Prince, then?”

“Well, I’m usually not ,” Harry said, a smile quirking his lips. “But I don’t have many people I genuinely care about, so my methods of showing it may be a bit odd.”

“Oh,” Eggsy said. “So, that was you wanting to do it? Not out of, I don’t know, obligation, or nothin’?”

Harry nodded. “Quite right. I _wanted_ to do those things.” He averted his gaze slightly. “I enjoy seeing you happy, so it’s not entirely selfless, mind you.”

“Oh,” Eggsy said again. “Alright, then. And it ain’t charity, neither?”

“Certainly not.”

“You know I like you, too, right? It’s--I don’t show it the same, I guess, but--”

Harry smiled softly. “I do. Thank you, Eggsy.”

They had talked a bit more before saying good night, and as soon as Eggsy turned the corner out of view from Harry’s house, he was glad for the cold, because the sudden blush at remembering Harry’s words ( _I enjoy seeing you happy_ ) made his face turn bright red.

When he’d told Roxy about it, she’d rolled her eyes and smirked at him.

So Harry had continued to buy him dinner sometimes, but Eggsy also had the chance to return the favor. And Harry stopped with all the ties (which was just as well--Eggsy didn’t know where he would put more of them).

Harry’s home cooked meals were what Eggsy looked forward to the most, though.

“I was doing some work, if you don’t mind waiting for me to start dinner,” Harry said, heading upstairs and gesturing for him to follow. Eggsy did, reluctantly, and hovered outside the door as Harry sat back at his desk. Harry looked at him, eyebrow raised. “Are you a vampire who requires permission to enter certain areas?”

“Tha’s why London’s great--always fuckin’ cloudy,” Eggsy said, forcing himself to relax while stepping through the doorway. “May I?” he asked, gesturing towards the chair in the corner.

“Of course. You don’t mind waiting?”

“Nah, s’alright,” Eggsy said, sitting and making himself comfortable, all the while stealing looks at Harry, sitting there in his cardigan and glaring at the computer screen.

They worked in silence, for a while before Harry let out a chuckle. “Merlin’s still having difficulty accessing my computer.”

“Yeah?” Eggsy said, “He isn’t tryin’ hard, though, is he?”

Harry paused, and when Eggsy looked up from his phone, Harry was frowning. “What do you mean?”

“Well, he’d get in if he had the time to spare. If I can do it, he definitely can--”

“Wait, what was that?” Harry asked sharply.

Eggsy started, blinking at Harry, who was looking like he was holding back a yell. “Well, you--you said to stay, so I hacked into your camera--”

“You hacked--” Harry choked.

“I know I shouldn’t’ve, but I was curious, and I was pretty much screwed at that point anyway,” Eggsy continued nervously. “If I didn’t, I don’t think any world-saving would have happened--”

Harry let out a cackle. “Merlin will be _furious!_ ”

“I--what?” Eggsy said, totally confused at this point.

“Eggsy, Merlin has been trying to get into my personal computer for _years_. The fact that you got in so easily-- wait, maybe it would be best not to tell him. He’ll want to recruit you.” This last part was muttered under Harry’s breath.

“Wait--so I’m not in trouble?”

“Of course not!” Harry said, smirking. “But you should explain the whole saving the world part.”

“Well, that’s how I knew what happened and went to the shop--”

“Oh,” the mirth fled Harry’s face and he suddenly turned very pale. “Oh. You saw… all that, then?”

Eggsy shrugged.

Harry sighed, leaning back in his chair and took off his glasses, reaching up to run a hand over his face and then pinch the bridge of his nose. “I’m… sorry you had to witness that, Eggsy.”

Eggsy shook his head. “Not like you meant to die--”

“I _was_ referring to the mass slaughter--”

Eggsy snorted. “Well, I went and killed Arthur and sliced his neck open before blowing up thousands of people, so. Yeah. That don’t bother me much. I was more worried about you.”

Harry dropped his hand to stare at Eggsy. “I believe Merlin hasn’t told me the full story.”

“‘Bout V-Day?”

“About how you became involved. I didn’t hear much beyond Chester betrayed us and died.”

“Don’t matter,” Eggsy said, shaking his head. “Over now, innit?”

“I suppose, yes,” Harry said vaguely. He gave Eggsy a searching look. “I don’t think I quite understood what exactly it was I put you through--”

“Harry,” Eggsy interrupted, “Lay off it, alright? Not like you got yourself shot on purpose.”

“I’m still sorry,”

“Yeah, well,” Eggsy let out a huff. “I’m sorry, too. About stuff.”

“About stuff,” Harry repeated, but he was smiling again, so Eggsy counted it as a win.

After that conversation, Harry started wheedling him into going to plays and museums with him on weekends, for the purpose of “broadening his horizons” or some shit. Not that Eggsy hated it; he’d never gotten to go on the usual school trips (the money it would cost was too much for them to spare), and most of that shit was amazing.

Opera was about as horrific as he expected, though. Harry had looked disappointed, but well, he had _standards_.

Harry had tried to get him to see another, different opera (because even though they all sounded the same, they were unique and blah blah blah), but Eggsy roped him into seeing a football match instead.

So there they were, on a Sunday, getting ready to watch the Gunners at Wembly.

When Harry opened the door and Eggsy found him wearing a three piece _suit_ , he resisted rolling his eyes and dragged Harry back inside. “Harry, no one wears a fuckin’ suit to watch footie.”

Harry looked down at his attire with a small frown. “I wear this to similar sporting events,” he argued.

Eggsy rolled his eyes this time. “You’ll look like an utter prick, where we’re going. More casual-like, yeah?”

“You aren’t wearing your usual casual wear--”

“I have other clothes, you know.”

“Well, what would be more appropriate?”

“Not a suit, that’s for sure.”

“No suggestions?”

“I’m sure you can figure it out, Harry.”

Grumbling, Harry went upstairs and returned a few minutes later wearing dark trousers, and a cream colored jumper over a collared shirt. Eggsy paused, studying him. He sighed. “I suppose that’ll do.”

“If you expect me to wear denim, I’m afraid you’re horribly deluded,” Harry muttered darkly, but followed Eggsy out of the house all the same.

When they arrived outside the stadium and started waiting in line, Harry looked more and more disturbed at the enthusiasm displayed by fellow fans.

“Good lord,” Harry muttered, squinting over someone’s head, “Is that a _cannon_ costume?”

“Probs, yeah,” Eggsy shrugged. Fuckin’ tall people--Eggsy couldn’t see a thing.

“...I honestly didn’t know people would be willing to wear that much body paint in this weather,” Harry continued, and Eggsy watched as Harry’s eyebrows threatened to disappear into his hairline. “People attend these events for fun? _You_ attend these for fun?”

“Never been before, guv,” Eggsy shrugged. “Watched it on telly, sure.”

Harry tore his gaze from whatever was fascinating him, and peered at Eggsy. “This is a first for you, as well?”

Eggsy would have laughed at his wording if it didn’t make his mouth go dry all of a sudden.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah.”

They eventually got inside the stadium and took their seats. Harry still looked disconcerted at the level of enthusiasm fans were showing, but he had started to relax, at least as much as a spy could, and by the end of it, Harry had gotten so invested that he was hurling expletives with the best of them.

Needless to say, seeing Harry at a football game was even more entertaining than Eggsy thought it would be.

As they left, Harry seemed to pull himself together, and cleared his throat. “Well, that was educational.”

Eggsy snorted. “Educational, my arse. You were getting into it, weren’t you?”

Harry turned a little pink, but didn’t deny it.

They went for fish and chips after, Harry digging into the food with gusto. Seeing him eat something so messy seemed to contradict everything Harry usually represented: elegance, poise, and gentlemanly behavior. Eggsy thought he definitely didn’t mind seeing this side of Harry more often.

When Eggsy mentioned the game to Merlin the next day, Merlin had given him a hard stare. “Harry? At a _football_ match?”

Eggsy shrugged. “Yeah. New for both of us, really.”

Merlin sat back in his chair and rubbed his temples. “Next time I need Arthur to do paperwork, you get to tell him.”

Eggsy squawked at that. “What? You angry I didn’t invite you, guv?”

Merlin rolled his eyes. “Galahad, if I didn’t know otherwise, I’d think you were an idiot. As it is, you’re an idiot only on this particular matter.”

“Football?”

Merlin groaned and banged his forehead against the desk.

Eggsy meant to ask Roxy about it later that week, but he never got the chance.

Because Harry went missing.

Or, to be more accurate, Harry got kidnapped.

It happened on a fucking _Wednesday_ , as if Wednesday’s weren’t difficult enough to get through as is. Cameras showed Harry getting in the back of a Kingsman taxi on his way home from work, as he often did, but he never made it home.

Merlin was growling at minions and stalking HQ while the rest of Kingsman went onto high alert.

Whoever had done it had been thorough. The cab was a replica of the regular Kingsman cab, and the timing had been precise in manipulating a swap.

A few hours later, Lamorak had found Harry’s signet ring, glasses, umbrella, watch, belt, and suit coat in an alleyway on the other side of London, and the tracker in the sole of Harry’s shoe was being electronically blocked. If Merlin had any hair left, he’d be tearing it out by now.

It was twelve hours after Harry had vanished from CCTV that they received a message.

A video.

Merlin called Eggsy back to the store from where he had been stalking the streets in the East End to view it.

Merlin was pale when he led Eggsy to the meeting room, and played the footage.

It was of Harry, tied to a chair, wincing due to the obvious cut just above his eye. He looked beaten and dirty, hair out of his usual style, and he was looking warily at something or someone behind the camera. His gun holsters were empty, and his shoes were missing.

“Hello, _Eggy_. Remember me?”

Merlin swore at the person who stepped into frame.

“Charlie, you _fucking_ wanker,” Eggsy breathed.

“Yes, it’s me,” Charlie continued, “Thought I died, didn’t you? Well, you were wrong. And now your _friend_ here is going to pay for it.”

Eggsy felt his insides turn to ice.

“Not all at once, of course. That would be too quick, I think,” Charlie said thoughtfully, before grinning. “And I want you to suffer.”

The screen went black.

“Shit,” Eggsy whispered, “ _Shit_.”

“When you electrocuted him, you must have fried the chip implant,” Merlin muttered, and Eggsy turned to look at him. Merlin was tapping away at his clipboard.

“I’m sorry, I should’ve--” Eggsy started.

“Oh, no you don’t, lad,” Merlin cut in sharply, looking up and fixing Eggsy with a glare. “This is on all of us. Don’t keep us from taking our share of the blame. That’ll be playing right into Charlie’s hands.”

Eggsy took a deep breath. “Right. What are we going to do?”

Merlin looked back to his clipboard. “Currently, we’re tracking Charlie’s whereabouts--he’d be more careful about making sure Harry is kept out of sight. We’ve also gotten visuals on the driver. We’re searching for him through CCTV footage. Ah--”

“What is it?”

“We can track their movements as far as France.”

“The hell’s in France? Charlie’s summer villa?”

Merlin paused. “Chester had a summer villa.”

Of fucking course.

“Chester chose Charlie as a candidate, yeah? Did they know each other before?”

“They ran in similar social circles. Hold on--the cameras should still be fully operational--” A few quick taps and Merlin was bringing up the camera feed of the end of a driveway--with the faux Kingsman cab pulling through the gates.

“The cameras inside have been disabled, but I’d installed this one without Chester’s knowledge--”

Eggsy grinned. “Merlin, you’re the guv’nor.”

“You can scout it out--Lamorak and Lancelot are the only other agents here at the moment and there’s other locations I want them to investigate. We can drop you near Saint-Jeannet; that’s approximately sixteen kilometers northwest of Arthur’s location.”

“And if he’s there?”

“Get him home, lad.”

The flight was almost two hours and Eggsy was restless throughout most of it. Faye, his pilot, had shot him increasingly displeased looks as they went. Eggsy was wearing a suit (because Kingsman is ridiculous, that’s why), this time a dark grey one with a black tie. And armed to the fucking teeth. Faye had rolled her eyes at him, muttering something about overkill, but if Harry was at the location, Eggsy fully intended to give him his weapons of choice. And deliver a fucking message to the idiots who decided kidnapping him was a good idea.

He had not expected to be landing while riding a _fuckin’ motorbike_ , but the tech department was just that cool.

“Where’ve you been hiding these?” Eggsy asked Merlin, as he navigated the narrow streets.

“Somewhere far from where you could get your hands on them,” Merlin answered wryly before getting down to business. “There’s a chance communication will be knocked out when you get inside; at that point you’ll be on your own. You have your emergency signal in the case that you need backup. Otherwise, if he’s there, contact me, evacuate Arthur, and make for the safe house in Cannes. Coordinates are being sent to your glasses.”

“Understood. See you on the other side, then, Merlin.”

When Eggsy arrived at the villa, he hid his bike in the bushes and chucked his Halo suit. He scaled the wall, keeping close to the hedges that skirted the property. There were guards, patrolling in pairs, and Eggsy scaled a tree in the yard so he could watch them go through two rotations before plotting his next move.

Ten guards, eight in a rotation. Semi-automatics. Very little protective gear. Unlike Valentine’s army, these were not trained professionals, more like hired thugs. His connection to Merlin had cut out about ten meters past the gates, and the guards seemed to be operating their own radios.

Pressing his glasses to bring up the floorplan for the villa, Eggsy quickly figured out a route to clear the second floor before heading downstairs.

Getting past the guards was easy; timing it so he had the maximum amount of time to get to the second floor and jimmy open the window. Thankfully, none of the dickheads looked up.

He slipped inside, finding the room empty, and in the cold light shining through the window, the furniture covered in white sheets looked creepy as fuck.

The second floor was completely empty, as was the first, but the passageway behind the fireplace in the parlor (posh gits and their fifty room houses) had lights leading down to the bunker that existed under the house--apparently specially renovated for V-Day.

The bunker had two levels. In the first one, Eggsy could already tell it was heavily guarded, and he could hear voices approaching him. With nowhere to hide, Eggsy simply shut the passageway door (because soundproofing), and drew out a pistol while wielding the Rainmaker.

The two bastards who rounded the corner didn’t stand a chance, but the sound drew shouts and the sound of footsteps. He quickly snatched the radio off of one of the dead guards and the key card hanging from his the lanyard around his neck. Ducking around the corner, Eggsy made his way towards what he knew to be the control room. Bullets whizzed past his head and he opened the Rainmaker to protect his back as he ran. He took down the the men standing outside--three--with a few well placed punches and bullets before swiping the card and slipping inside--

Only to find himself faced with a gun barrel aimed at his face at close range. The man wielding it sneered. “Drop your weapons!”

Eggsy had to force himself not to roll his eyes. He dropped his weapons, instead using the millisecond where the man hesitated to snatch the gun from his grasp, and fire.

He tucked his gun back into its holster and picked up the Rainmaker, checking the new weapon over quickly. He used the man’s shirt to wipe the blood splatter from his glasses before heading to the control panel. The machine causing electrical interference was set up elsewhere, but the local camera system showed that Harry being kept in one of the rooms in the lower level.

Eggsy hesitated before reaching out and yanking the cables from the wall. All the screens snapped to static. The sheer amount of wires would take them a while to untangle and provide him with some amount of cover.

He encountered only a few more men as he made his way towards the room where Harry was kept--having a radio gave him updates as to their movements enough to give him warning to slip into the shadows when they neared.

Finally, he reached the correct door and entered.

“Harry,” Eggsy breathed, running forward and dropping to his knees. Harry was slumped forward, and blood matted his hair flat against his skull. “Harry,” Eggsy said, more desperately, patting his face urgently. Harry let out a low groan and shifted slightly. Eggsy let out a sigh of relief when Harry’s eyes flickered open.

“Eggsy?” Harry asked hoarsely, looking at him blearily.

“That’s me,” Eggsy said, laughing a bit breathlessly. “Let’s get you out of here, yeah?”

“Well, well, well,” a voice drawled from behind. “Isn’t this a touching reunion?”

Eggsy felt the cold metal touch of a barrel being pressed against the back of his neck, and he froze, turning slightly to look over his shoulder, hands tightening against where he had steadied himself against the chair.

“ _Charlie_.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't get paid for this. All credit goes to the original creators.
> 
> Thanks again to [National_Nobody](http://archiveofourown.org/users/National_Nobody) and [potooyoutoo](http://archiveofourown.org/users/potooyoutoo). You rock.

Charlie smirked, a bit disbelievingly. “You--you actually came. You idiot--now I have you right where I want you. Hands above your head,” he said and Eggsy slowly complied. Harry had shaken off his grogginess at this point and was glaring daggers at Charlie.

Charlie motioned to the man behind him to handcuff Eggsy and then drag him back and slam him against the wall. Stars crossed his vision, but Eggsy simply grit his teeth and blinked them away.

Charlie stared at him, smug satisfaction written all over his face. “Now, let’s get started, shall we?” he said, pulling out a knife and twirling it expertly. He trailed the blade along the line of Harry’s jaw and Eggsy stopped struggling and went very very still. “That’s better,” Charlie said. He peered down at Harry. “He seems to have survived a head injury. It would be a shame to reverse the healing process.”

Eggsy made a sound that sounded like a growl. Charlie just laughed. “That upset you?” He glanced at Harry again. “Oh,” he said, nodding. “I see.”

“See what, shithead?” Eggsy spat, carefully maneuvering out of his handcuffs, but held them there waiting. 

“You couldn’t have gotten chosen for Kingsman any other way--” Charlie turned to look at Harry. “He must have been a good fuck. Did you find a way to shut him up?” Charlie bent down closer to Harry’s face. “Did he look good on his knees? Perhaps I’ll have to try him out myself, see what the fuss is about.” The guard holding Eggsy guffawed, and Eggsy felt sick.

Harry slumped in his chair, ducking his head. Charlie let out a laugh and bent down further to look at Harry’s face--only to reel backwards clutching his nose from Harry’s sudden and vicious headbutt. 

Charlie’s thug loosened his grip on Eggsy in surprise for a moment, but a moment was all Eggsy needed. He was down in seconds, and dead in another when Eggsy snapped his neck with cold efficiency, handcuffs clattering to the floor. When he turned back to Harry, Charlie had a gun.

“You don’t want him to die, do you?” Charlie taunted, leveling his gun at Harry’s head.

“The last time someone hurt him, I tricked a man into poisoning himself, blew up the heads of half the world leaders, and stabbed a man in the fucking back,” Eggsy said darkly. “And I’m still not quite over it.” He stared at Charlie, watching as sweat beaded down his forehead. “So do you really want to piss me off more than I am already?”

Apparently he did, and had the  _ brilliant _ idea of pointing the gun at Eggsy instead. 

Fucking  _ amateur _ . Eggsy had him disarmed and on the ground before Charlie could hurl a single insult. And any he might have had dried up instantly when Eggsy pointed the gun between his eyes.

“Give me a reason  _ not  _ to pull the fucking trigger,” Eggsy said quietly. Charlie flinched.

“Galahad,” Harry said, “Merlin will want to interrogate him.”

Charlie let out a honest to god  _ whimper _ at that. Eggsy smiled mirthlessly. 

“Karma, that.”

After knocking Charlie out with a stun dart, Eggsy untied Harry and gave him a thorough lookover.

“Eggsy,” Harry said impatiently, “Eggsy, please--”

Eggsy ignored him, making sure that Harry was okay to move, before handing over his umbrella and Charlie’s gun. “The emergency signal was activated when that prick shoved me against the wall. I’d say we got an hour or two to wait at least, but it’d be better if we cleared off, let cleanup handle the rest.”

“Eggsy--” Harry took Eggsy’s hands between his own and Eggsy realized suddenly that they were shaking. “Breathe. That’s it--”

Eggsy had to blink the black spots from his vision as he forced himself to take deep breaths.

“We can knock out their signal blocker, get in touch with Merlin and sit tight for a while. Alright?”

Eggsy nodded, pulling himself together and shaking away his anxiety. “Right. Cover me.” Because like hell was he letting Harry put himself into danger again.

The device was in the basement, and, after making sure the remaining guards were dead and Charlie was trussed up like a turkey, they disabled the device and Eggsy handed over a second pair of glasses to Harry so he could contact Merlin.

Then he went to the roof and picked off the remaining guards one by one because his adrenaline was still pumping and he hadn’t messed Charlie up as much as he had wanted to.

By the time the clean up crew arrived and Lancelot was striding across the lawn to take care of Charlie, it was mid-morning. She socked Charlie in the face before dragging him onto the waiting helicopter, darting him again for good measure. Then she stalked back towards them, pulled Eggsy into a tight hug. “He’s alright, you’re alright, and you’re both coming home,” she whispered fiercely, and Eggsy just hugged her back, letting some of the tension fall from his shoulders.

Eggsy piloted on the way back, Roxy standing guard over Charlie, and if she accidentally tossed him off when they landed, well, Eggsy was considering doing much worse. Harry was whisked away by doctors immediately and while Eggsy understood, it didn’t stop the feeling of panic when Harry was out of view.

Needless to say, he didn’t sleep well that night.

He didn’t end up seeing Harry until the debrief four days later, once Harry was cleared to leave the infirmary. Eggsy was glad the doctor’s hadn’t been able to keep Harry there longer, because Merlin had started to get annoyed by Eggsy’s insistence on updates about Harry’s state of being. The debrief was long and exhausting, more so than the mission itself, but that’s the way they usually were.

Harry looked better, with the bruises faded and wearing a pristine suit as always, but his face was curiously blank throughout the entire thing and, even when Eggsy snuck glances in his direction, Harry never looked at him once. Eggsy, who had been so happy to see Harry again, felt his stomach drop.

“Any final comments?” Merlin asked, tapping away at his clipboard.

“Yeah, how’d we make sure this neva happens again?” Eggsy asked.

“Part of the problem is that we’re short on handlers--tech usually verifies with the driver and performs a scan before Arthur exits. In this particular instance, Arthur didn’t want to wait for the confirmation,” Merlin finished icily.

Eggsy stared at him. “You taking the fucking piss?”

“I am not.”

Eggsy turned to look at Harry. “Arthur, you fucking wanker.”

“Not something I intend to repeat, thank you,” Harry said faintly, and Eggsy could tell by the way he clasped his hands on the table until the knuckles turned white that he was serious.

“Good. I don’t have time to deal with an Arthur going through a rebellious phase,” Merlin muttered. Harry’s lips twitched as if to smile.

“There’s another thing,” Eggsy said slowly. “What kind of detail do we have on ex-candidates? Charlie is a bit different, with him supposed to be dead and all, but what about the others?”

“We have their agreement to strict confidentiality with name and name of next of kin on the body bags--”

“Bruv, I wrote  _ Dean’s _ name on that bag, thinkin’ if you killed me, at least you’d take that bastard out, too.” Eggsy shook his head, contemplating the perfectly polished dining room table. “Do you have any other sort of paperwork? Like, legal agreements? Do you keep an eye on them? Use amnesia darts?”

“Galahad, not every candidate comes back angry enough to kill off Arthur--”

“It’s the same though, innit?” Eggsy interrupted, drumming his fingers on the edge of the table, even though he knew it drove Harry and Merlin crazy. “Charlie was pissed enough with me to try and hurt me through Kingsman. Well, with Arthur--sorry, the  _ previous _ Arthur--I was angry and he also tried to poison me, so--”

Harry made a sharp aborted movement that Eggsy noted but otherwise ignored. 

“I beat Charlie in the test, plus he hated my guts anyway, and then I blew up the heads of all his friends.”

Merlin threw a look at Harry before meeting Eggsy’s gaze. “It’s true that both of these situations were unusual in the personal nature of the attacks. Usually we have several checks in place for previous candidates, but since Charlie was dead, there wasn’t a reason to keep an eye on him. More legal looking documents tend to put a mental block on breaking a contract, and would make them second guess their decision to do so. At least the moral ones. That’s worth considering, thank you Galahad.”

Eggsy let out a short laugh. “Right.”

Merlin sighed. “This is mostly a result of how few staff we’re operating with. But it also says something about the type of candidates that are being proposed. There could be a dismissal process put in place. Instead of simply throwing them out.”

“Galahad’s response was to steal a car--”

“I apologized for that,” Eggsy said shortly, shooting a glare in Harry’s direction.

“Regardless, perhaps we should consider a verbal interview process. I remember that the only knight who could work with Bors was Gawain, and vice-versa, which made them nightmares to work with. And that’s part of an interview process, too. Getting along with co-workers,” Merlin finished, sounding amused. He side-eyed Harry, who let out a sigh. 

“Very well,” Harry said, “It will be more work for me, but less painful in the long run.” He frowned. “It will also be more… corporate.”

Merlin grinned. “Who said it had to be a normal verbal interview?”

Eggsy sniggered. “Running into them on the street and gauging their reactions?”

“For you, Eggsy, that would be ideal,” Harry said thoughtfully. “It would certainly weed out the...well--”

“Elitist pricks like Charlie?” Eggsy supplied.

“Not quite how I would put it, but essentially, yes,” Harry sighed.

“We’ll put some ideas forward for the next meeting,” Merlin said. 

“If that’s all, you’re dismissed,” Harry said, and rose to his feet, Eggsy and Merlin copying him. Merlin hurried to the door and slipped through it, closing it before Eggsy reached it.

Eggsy blinked. “The fuck, Merlin.”

“I think we should talk, Eggsy,” Harry said quietly. 

Eggsy looked at him over his shoulder, turning to face him fully when he caught Harry’s stony expression. “Is somthin’ the matter?” Eggsy asked, frowning as he made his way back across the room to where Harry was standing.

“Not with me, no,” Harry replied. “You were hyperventilating.”

Eggsy let out a deep breath. “Well, the last time you had a gun held to your head, you ended up dead. So.”

Harry nodded. “A fair point.” His gaze softened. “Are you alright?”

Eggsy let out a snort of laughter. “‘Course! You were the one who got kidnapped!”

Harry raised his arm slowly, and rested his hand on the curve where Eggsy’s shoulder met his neck. “Are you certain?”

Eggsy swallowed, the words he was about to say dried up in his throat. He shrugged and gave Harry a tiny smile that he didn’t really feel. “I don’t wanna see you like that again, Harry.”

Harry’s breath hitched, and he drew his thumb along the line of Eggsy’s jaw. He carefully took off Eggsy’s glasses with his free hand and placed them facing away on the table before removing his own, then moved to cup Eggsy’s face in both hands. “Eggsy,” he breathed, and brushed a thumb across Eggsy’s cheek, “Darling.”

Eggsy felt his eyes burn, but grit his teeth to stave off the tears.

Harry let out another sigh, lowering his arms and taking a step back--

And Eggsy snaked his hands out to grab the lapels of Harry’s suit coat and tug him back down, tilting his head so that their lips could meet.

Harry stilled, and Eggsy withdrew, slowly, as if Harry was an animal he didn’t want to startle. “Is this--” Eggsy bit his lip, taking a step back. “You don’t--sorry, I shouldn’t’ve--”

“I don’t what, Eggsy? Because if you think that I do not want you, you would be severely mistaken.”

Eggsy stared at Harry, who was still standing there, frozen, entire body tense like a coiled spring.

“I--You do?”

Harry smiled faintly. “How could I not?”

Harry, like he was at everything else, was fucking  _ excellent _ at kissing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own it. I just love these children...
> 
> Thanks to [National_Nobody](http://archiveofourown.org/users/National_Nobody) and [potooyoutoo](http://archiveofourown.org/users/potooyoutoo), awesome editors that they are. <3
> 
> Thanks to you, my readers! We have reached the end. Thanks for keeping me going.
> 
> I plan to publish a second part from Harry's point of view, so keep a lookout! :)
> 
> Enjoy!

Harry, surprisingly, was pretty fucking awful at baking.

“In my defense,” Harry said mildly, after Eggsy is finished laughing at the blackened remains of what was supposed to be scones. “I’ve never done this before.”

“Why’d you try though?” Eggsy asked, wiping the tears from his eyes as he peered at the charcoal lumps sitting on the baking sheet.

“You mentioned a craving for cranberry orange scones the other day--”

Eggsy grinned, reaching up to give Harry a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks.”

Harry flushed slightly, which made Eggsy’s grin widen. Harry cleared his throat. “I’ve been meaning to speak with you about something.”

Eggsy had to try very hard not to let the smile drop. “Yeah? What about?”

Harry glared at the scones as if they personally offended him, before sighing and turning towards the kettle to pour the tea. When he looked back at Eggsy, his face softened. “It’s nothing to be worried about,” Harry said, reaching out to brush his fingers along the curve of Eggsy’s cheek. Eggsy leaned into touch, and a tiny smile lifted the corners of Harry’s mouth. 

“That makes me more worried,” Eggsy muttered. 

“Could you bring the bag from the pantry, please?” Harry asked, fixing their tea and bringing it to the sitting room, ever so polite.

The bag turned out to be cranberry orange scones.

“Why’d you try making them when you already bought some?” Eggsy asked. 

“A backup was necessary in this instance. Though I didn’t expect the batch to turn out as badly as it did,” Harry answered.

“I’m your taste tester now?”

“You are so much more, my darling.”

For all that Eggsy reveled in those tiny moments where Harry was just the tiniest bit ruffled, Harry seemed to make him turn bright red twice as often. Eggsy shoved a scone into his mouth to hide the fact that he was blushing like crazy, Harry shooting him an exasperated look that was much too fond to be hurtful.

“It’s about what happened with Chester.”

Eggsy stilled, then carefully finished chewing his (delicious) scone. Harry’s demeanor was calm, his body language open and nonthreatening. And if he  _ wasn’t _ doing it on purpose right now, Eggsy would eat his snapback.

“Wha ‘bout it?” Eggsy asked, forcing himself to get comfortable and taking a nonchalant sip of his tea. Made just how he liked it, with entirely too much sugar, which meant Harry was either trying to butter him up or make him as comfortable as possible for an entirely  _ un _ comfortable conversation.

“Can you tell me what happened?”

Eggsy frowned. “You know, don’t you? He tried to poison me, asked me to join his new world or some shit, I switched glasses, and when I said no, he poisoned himself instead.”

“As Arthur, I have to review the knights. Your case is different, because you failed the dog test. You didn’t like Chester, and you knew the feeling was mutual; you held a gun to his head, after all. When you pointed it at JB, your hand shook, but with Chester, you didn’t pause, you didn’t hesitate. And so far, you’ve only had to kill people who have been trying to kill  _ you _ . If asked, are you going to be able to pull the trigger?”

Harry still looked relaxed and nonchalant, but the look in his eyes was pure Arthur.

Part of Eggsy was upset that Harry had manipulated him into feeling comfortable and then asked him questions about  _ work _ , talking to him as Arthur when he was supposed to be just  _ Harry _ , stupidly soft cardigans and all. Another part was a spy and so he understood. 

“I also  _ could _ have told Chester I switched the glasses, thus preventing his death. I also  _ could _ have just skipped the whole thing and broken his neck. I also  _ didn’t _ have to stab his neck with a pen and dig out the microchip.” Eggsy was quiet for a moment. “You told me Kingsman is in the business of saving innocent lives. That deaths should have meaning. Killing JB served no purpose. There was no reason. It was like telling me to kill Daisy, or me mum. I’m not going to change who I am for a job, Arthur, even the best job in the world.”

“How is it different to choosing not to shoot the dog?”

“Because the purpose of the dog test wasn’t to kill JB. If it was, I’d’ve  _ really _ failed, and Lancelot would have Merlin’s balls by now for making her shoot  _ her _ dog. It was about following orders. Which I can do. I’m just not going to do it without thinking. If that’s what you want, you’d be better off making robots to do all the work for you.”

Harry made a thoughtful noise. “I just find it surprising that you can kill someone without blinking, but refuse to hurt an animal.”

“Humans can be malicious, but animals have no reason to be.”

“Hm,” Harry said, scooting forward to pour them a second cup of tea. “To be honest, I’m not worried about your abilities as an agent. You’ve proven yourself many times. Our benefactors, however, are dreadfully old fashioned.”

Eggsy snorted at that, letting the tension fall from his shoulders. “If they’re anything like old Chester, I almost feel sorry for you. Almost, because I’d probably punch them in person, so better you than me.”

“I’m a gentleman, so I’ll make sure that no punching takes place, though I would enjoy such a spectacle myself.” Harry patted the spot next to him and Eggsy gratefully moved so that he was leaning against Harry’s side, feet tucked up against the cushions. 

“They only know the barest of details in any case. Merlin is protective over who gets to see the footage. They wouldn’t approve of your aiming a loaded weapon at Chester’s face.”

“You watched it?”

“Only recently. Once you mentioned the fact that you were less than a foot away. We hadn’t a reason before then. Merlin has the utmost confidence in your abilities, despite, or I suspect probably because of, failing the dog test.”

Eggsy snorted, poking Harry in the side. “Merlin doesn’t have confidence in anyone,” he said.

Harry let out a chuckle, lifting his arm to fit Eggsy more snugly against his side. “Part of his charm, I suppose,” Harry said mildly. 

“I was more impressed with your performance later.”

Eggsy froze. “You watched that, too?”

“I did,” Harry answered simply, brushing his hand against Eggsy’s side in a soothing motion. He turned his head to press a kiss to the crown of his head. “You were bloody brilliant, my dear.”

“Oh,” Eggsy said, and felt himself blushing. Like a fuckin’ teenager, for fuck sake.

“You were,” Harry insisted, and Eggsy, to his utter horror, felt himself flushing up to his ears. 

“Not really, but fanks.”

“You managed to get a confession, the information and technology necessary to prevent the murder of billions, and the execution of a traitor all at once.”

Eggsy shrugged. “Wasn’t thinkin’ about that.”

Harry let out a sigh. “I know you weren’t.” He reached out to lift Eggsy’s chin until their eyes met. “I am terribly sorry.”

Eggsy poked Harry again, a bit harder this time. “You didn’t want to get shot in the head. And I’ve already forgiven you, so shut up.”

Harry smiled, leaning forward to kiss his forehead. “As you wish.”

“You fuckin’ missed,” Eggsy told him.

“Hm, what was that?” 

Eggsy surged upwards to press their mouths together. “See? You missed before.”

Harry let his hand slide up until he was cupping the back of Eggsy’s neck. “And that... _ that _ was not a real kiss.”

A while later, when both of them were breathless and Eggsy was straddling Harry’s lap, Eggsy rested their foreheads together and asked “But really, how can you cook but be  _ shite  _ at making scones?”

Harry threw back his head and laughed.


End file.
